Closure and fastener for threaded containers



p 1952 P. w. CARPENTER ,6 6

CLOSURE AND FASTENER FOR THREADED CONTAINERS Filed March 28, 1949 INVENTOR fly-j. PAUL w. CARPENTER Mf dwmr ATTORNEYS Patented Sept. 16; 1952 UNITED .s TEs cmsUnEAND; FASTENER FOR THREADED-- CONTAINERS; I

Paulwnfiarpenter, Fort Worth-Tex. I AppIIcation'MarchZS, 1949,-Serial No.i83,964

This invention -relates closures ior -threaded containers, particularly" containers havinga screw-threaded neck; such as collapsiblemetal tubes; commonly employedifor moldingand dis pensing; toothpaste, :shaving cream. ointments, I

edible-pastes, andthe like; U 7

An object of the "invention is to provide 'aiclm sure fora threaded container-thatis simplyand securely closed and lockedinclosed position,;yet

which is readily and quickly openedwithoutthenecessity for completely unscrewing and-removing theclosure.

Another objectis'to provide a closure oithis type that is not easily lost or mislaid:

Another object is to provide, in such 'a closure, means whereby the. closure .may be securely szclaims. (c1. .zzosz) loc'kedior shipment and traveling vllurposes and I may quickly be unlocked and 'adjustedior manual latchin and unlatching in service;

" yp ly, he invention,.itakestheiiorm .oia

closure for acontainernrthe,like'havinga screw-- threaded neck, the closureincludinganinter: nally threaded-ring adapted jtolbe screwed on the neck of theconta'iner, arcap pivoted ito.jthe ring,v the ring, ,having a. resilient portionrflexible inwardly of ments on the cap and on the resilient portion of the ring. In an illustrative form of the inven-' tion, the ring is threadedinternally substantially entirely therethrough, the cap is secured to the ring by means of hinged joint and the resilient sector or portion of the ring takes theform of a' the ring,...an'd cooperating. jlatch ele-L h spring finger defined by ,apair of slots extending through the ring, the spring ,flnger being integrally rooted to the ring. The cooperating or I complementary latch elementsmay includearadially projecting detent extending outwardly from theiree end of the springfinger and ecooperatingnotch formedinthecap to retain the cap in closed position.

The invention will be described in greaterdetail and other of its objects and advantages will be in part apparent and in part pointed out in the following detailed description of an embodiment of the invention as shown in the accompanying drawing, wherein: h

Fig. 1 is an elevational view of the upper portion of a collapsible metal tube showing the closure of the invention attached thereto;

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the closure member in section with the cap in locked position;

Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the closure in section and the cap unlocked and partially open;

Fig. 4 is a side elevation of the closure taken at'rightang-les .tothe-viewsof Figs. 1,2 and 3; and showing the'cap-in open position? i f I Fig. 5is a sectional view through -theclosure ring taken along the line 5-5' of Fig. -3 ;-and" Fig. 6 is a plan view of the closure-shown-in the previous figures; the cap being closed.

Referring-to the drawing, particularly to Figs: 1, 2" and ii-thereof; there is shown a conventional toothpaste tube In having a'conical top-portion II and an upstanding screw-threadedneck l2 through which the contents of the tube are 'dis--. pensed. The closure of the invention-includes aring member l3 having a cap pivotedthere: to by the hinge I5. The caphas a'dependingrim l6 that forms a skirt about the upper portion'of the ring member 13 when the cap is closed. Secured to the underside ofthe top of the cap is a sealing disc =|"I of cork or similar material that engages the'top of the containerneckwheh "the closure is "seated to seal the container.

As best seen in Figs. .4 and 5, the ringmember I3 "is provided with a-pair of substantially-parals lel slots I8 that are formed in or are cut into the ring from the top rim thereof-downwardly through the material of the ring. Theslots -ex-' tend downwardly-through one or mo'r'e of the threads formed-in the ring and defirieanup standing finger "19 that is. integrally-rootedwith the--material of thering. The upstanding finger is typically disposed diametrically across the ring fromthehinge; Preferably the ringl3 isiormed from-'wmaterial such as synthetic resin, metal; or the like, that has inherent resilience or springiness. To increase the flexibility of the finger I9,-tl're-slots [8 may terminate at their lower ends ,ina thread. depression where the ring l3ha-s itsthinrrestsection.'

Extending radiallyoutwardly of the ring from. the top freeend of fin er l9 is'an integral projection 20fhaving'a downwardly and outwardly sloping upperface 2! and a downwardly anjdinwardly sloping lower face 22. This projection forms a detent that engages in the notch or recess 23 formedin the cap l4 when the cap is in closed position as shown in Fig. 2.

Referring to Fig. 3, it will be understood that closed, the finger springs back to engage the detent in the notch 23. If the closure is left in partially unscrewed position, the pivoted cap can be snapped open and closed at will. However, when the cap is closed and the closure is screwed fully down on the container neck as shown in Fig. 2, the back of the spring finger I9 is contacted by the threaded neck of the container and is prevented from flexin inwardly. Thus, the detent 20 is maintained in the notch 23 so that the cap I4 is securely locked in closed position.

From the foregoing description, it will be evident that a number of minor variations may be made in the construction of the closure of the present invention without departing from the spirit thereof. For example, th spring finger I! need not be formed integrally with the closure ring; instead, the finger may be attached in a notch formed in the ring. Moreover, the cooperating latch elements may be reversed, the notch being formed in the end of the spring finger and the cooperating projection or detent being formed on the cap. Although it is preferred that the cap be hinged as shown, other forms of pivoted joints may be employed with success; such joints may comprise ball and socket joints 01' joints from which the cap may be completely removed after partial opening of the cap has been accomplished.

It is also apparent that the principles of the invention may be applied to plug type closures as distinguished from a closure utilizing an internally threaded ring.

I claim:

1. A closure for a container or the like having a screw-threaded neck comprising a resilient ring having internal threads extending substantially entirely therethrough and being adapted to be screwed on the neck of the container, a cap pivoted to said ring, said ring having a pair of slots extending thereinto defining a spring finger integrally rooted to said ring, and cooperating latch elements on said cap and on said spring finger.

2. A closure for a container or the like having a screw-threaded neck comprising a resilient ring having internal threads extending substantially entirely therethrough and being adapted to be screwed on the neck of the container, a cap pivoted to said ring, said ring having a pair of slots extending thereinto defining a spring finger integrally rooted to said ring, a latch element projecting radially outwardly from the free end of said finger, and a notch formed in said cap and positioned to engage said latch element to retain the cap in closed position.

3. A closure for a container or the like having a screw-threaded neck comprising a resilient ring having internal threads extending from the top of said ring downwardly therein for a substantial distance, said ring being adapted to be screwed on the neck of the container with substantially complete engagement of the internal threads of the ring with the threaded portion of the neck, a cap pivoted to said ring and swingable to a closed position in which it covers the top of said ring, said ring having a pair of vertical slots opening into the top edge of said ring and extending substantially downwardly thereinto defining a spring finger integrally rooted to the ring, the internal threaded portion of said ring being formed at least in part in the internal face of said spring finger, and cooperating latch elements on said cap and on said spring finger.

4. A closure for a container or the like having a screw-threaded neck comprising a. ring having internal threads extending from the top of said ring downwardly therein for a substantial distance, said ring being adapted to be screwed on the neck of the container with substantially complete engagement of the internal threads of the ring with the threaded portion of the neck, a cap pivoted to said ring and swingable to a closed position in which it covers the top of said ring, a pair of vertical slots opening into the top edge of said ring and extending substantially downwardly thereinto defining a spring finger rooted to the ring, the internal threaded portion of said ring being formed at least in part in the internal face of said spring finger, and cooperating latch elements on said cap and on said spring finger.

5. A closure for a container or the like having a screw-threaded neck comprising a ring having threads extending from the top of said ring downwardly for a substantial distance, said ring being adapted to be screwed to the neck of the container with substantially complete engagement oi the threads of the ring with the threaded portion of the neck, a cap pivoted to said ring and swingable to a closed position in which it covers the opening of said ring, said ring having a pair of vertical slots opening into the top edge of said ring and extending substantially downwardly thereinto defining a spring finger rooted to the ring, the threaded portion of said ring being formed at least in part in a face of said spring finger, and cooperating latch elements on said cap and on said spring finger.

PAUL W. CARPENTER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,627,065 Rambough May 3, 1927 1,976,426 Zisch Oct. 9, 1934 2,013,527 Sherman Sept. 3, 1935 2,121,843 Vaughn June 28, 1938 2,129,873 Romati et al. Sept. 13, 1938 2,235,263 Nesmith Mar. 18, 1941 2,365,888 Linderfelt et al Dec. 26, 1944 

